Written by Eghonghon Eromosele, BS candidate in Community Health, University of
Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and participant in the 2024 Institute for Public Health Summer
Research Program
This summer, as a student researcher in the Cardiovascular Disease and Hematology (RADIANCE) Track, I am excited to work on the NutriConnect study with Jing Li, MD, DrPH, MS. This study, funded by the American Heart Association, seeks to explore the outcomes of produce prescription approaches on fruit and vegetable consumption and food insecurity. One approach provides in-store coupons and vouchers, while the other delivers directly to study participants.
Produce prescription is a Food is Medicine (FIM) intervention increasingly being researched. Produce prescription prescribes fruits and vegetables to patients experiencing food insecurity, low household income, and cardiovascular disease. This intervention greatly relies on collaborations between healthcare professionals, community organizations, and grocery providers. NutriConnect partners with BJC HealthCare and Schnucks to adequately reach patients and connect them with the fresh
fruits and vegetables they need.
There are several reasons why someone may not eat properly, and many are related to
social determinants of health (SDOH). According to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, SDOH are nonmedical factors that affect our health outcomes. SDOH are
largely outside of our control. Therefore, if our environment and living conditions cannot support them, it can be difficult to improve health behaviors.
I am excited about NutriConnect because I believe the FIM intervention is a key to healthier communities. It addresses several SDOH including access to healthy food and financial security. Removing barriers to nutritious food can promote healthy eating and improve health
outcomes such as heart disease and obesity. Increased access to healthy food may also
reduce health disparities between communities, pushing us closer to health equity.
NutriConnect and similar studies will ultimately inform best practices for establishing,
scaling, and sustaining more FIM initiatives within health-care systems, local communities,
and the wider population.
As a future physician, I want to address the whole patient, not just their condition. My work
in NutriConnect and FIM research brings me closer to this goal, and I look forward to all the
ways I will grow from this summer experience.